Chennai: Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Sunday urged the Prime Minister to take up the arrest of the state’s fishermen at a high political level with Sri Lanka apart from diplomatic channels to secure the immediate release of 54 fishermen and their 34 boats, including 19 who were apprehended on Saturday.
“Nineteen fishermen along with their two boats from Tamil Nadu from Nagapattinam were apprehended by the Sri Lankan Navy on Saturday,” she said, adding that this was the fifth instance of such recent arrests of Tamil Nadu fishermen in a span of a few weeks. In a letter to Modi, she said the number of fishermen in Sri Lankan custody stands at 54, besides 34 boats.
“Despite my repeated requests to you to take up the matter with the Sri Lankan authorities and ensure the early release of the fishermen and their boats, there has been little response and the fishermen have suffered prolonged detention,” she said. “We are still awaiting the much anticipated strong and sustained diplomatic initiative to resolve the vexatious issue,” she added.
The CM also sought the early sanction of the Comprehensive Special Package for Diversification of fisheries at a cost of Rs 1,520 crore and a recurring grant of Rs 10 crore per annum for maintenance dredging, which she had requested in her memorandum to him in June last year.
